Into the Wild - 2007

Chandler - 4/18/13

I never thought I'd see the day when I let Sean Penn and Eddie Vedder into my house for 2.5 hours, and I didn't want to punch them in the dick afterward. In fact, Kristen Stewart made a 20 minute appearance as herself (a slutty, trailer trash 16 year old)... and I actually don't dislike her anymore today than I did yesterday.

It's a fucking miracle.

Into the Wild starts slow but really picks up steam once it has a chance to give you some back story. Only then did I finally start to sympathize with the main character: a 23 year old kid who decides to run away from society to live a few years off the grid. Basically, he's a homeless man.

What makes this movie worth watching (and I find myself saying this a lot) is that it's based on a true story. And by all accounts, it was pretty damn accurate. The final scene has a major historical inaccuracy, but that's just Sean Penn trying to push the dirty hippie cause. It's also not worth me nit-picking, since he did a pretty good job directing the rest of the film.

Rating - 3

Atonement - 2007

Chandler - 1/15/13

Atonement is almost a great movie. It starts off painfully slow, conjuring up too many memories of Pride and Prejudice*. I began to question my viewing decision as I watched some spoiled rich brat run around whining about a play she wrote. But then Keira Knightley (by far the world's hottest anorexic person**) strips down and jumps into a fountain. Alright, Atonement. You have my attention.

The rest of the film deals with various guilt, pain and emotional suffering as the two main characters attempt to survive WW2 long enough to be united. It's a decent story, but the movie could have been a lot darker.

Sometimes in life you can fuck up so badly that you don't deserve forgiveness. Society places too much value on "I'm sorry," and not enough on the responsibility to not to fuck up in the first place. Far too often we give people a free pass, as if their apology is a sign of an unbearable burden that desperately needs to be lifted. But what about those who were originally wronged? Words and hindsight won't make amends or erase their disappointment.

Basically, I didn't like the end of the movie. It reminded me too much of people I know who selfishly create ways to achieve atonement. Maybe that makes it more realistic?

Rating - 3

*P&P is burned into my brain as one of the most horrible film experiences I've ever seen. It turns out what I was forced to watch in high school was the 1995 British TV series. I actually had no idea that a 2005 film was made, also starring Keira Knightley.

**K. Knight is adamant that she is not anorexic. Please don't sue us, KK. You're perfect the way you are.